Model record
Ford F-150 Years to Avoid: Reliability and Recalls
Every Ford F-150 model year in NHTSA's owner complaint file, 2010 to 2025: how many complaints each year drew, the problem owners named most, and the recalls to check before you buy.
NHTSA owner complaintsChecked Oct 3, 202620,960 complaints16 model years
Four Ford F-150 years drew more than 2,000 owner complaints each: 2013, 2018, 2011 and 2016. Owners named the powertrain most for 2013, 2018, 2011 and 2016.
It's a count of reports, not a failure rate, and the newest years have had less time on the road to collect them.
The 2015 to 2020 generation, the aluminum-body truck Ford called all-new for 2015, drew the most complaints, and the busiest single year is 2013, with 2,975.
Ford F-150 complaints by model year
Every Ford F-150 model year in NHTSA's owner complaint file, 2010 to 2025. Years with 2,000 or more complaints are dark; beside each bar is the system owners named most that year.
- 2010Electrical system18%842
- 2011Powertrain37%2,186
- 2012Powertrain38%1,777
- 2013Powertrain44%2,975
- 2014Powertrain27%1,520
- 2015Powertrain23%1,683
- 2016Powertrain27%2,023
- 2017Powertrain37%1,414
- 2018Powertrain43%2,273
- 2019Powertrain54%1,309
- 2020Powertrain47%713
- 2021Powertrain30%985
- 2022Powertrain27%578
- 2023Powertrain37%397
- 2024Powertrain30%184
- 2025Powertrain24%101
Best Ford F-150 years by complaint count
Of the years with at least five years on the road, these drew the fewest owner complaints. Fewer reports is not a clean bill of health: check the recalls for the exact car, and remember 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 have had less time to collect complaints. 2021 drew few complaints but has 29 recall campaigns, so check its recalls first.
- 2020Powertrain · 11 recalls713
- 2010Electrical system · 1 recall842
- 2021Few complaints, but 29 recalls985
Most common Ford F-150 problems
The systems owners named most across all 16 model years, counted from each year's six most-named systems.
- PowertrainNamed most in 15 of 16 years7,441
- EngineNever the top system in a year3,735
- Electrical systemNamed most in 1 of 16 years2,127
- Braking systemNever the top system in a year1,643
- Throttle and speed controlNever the top system in a year883
Our guides for these problems
Check engine codes Ford F-150 owners name
The OBD-II codes owners wrote into their complaints for the F-150 years we have read in full (2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2018), one count per complaint. Tap a code to read our guide; grey codes have no guide yet.
Ford F-150 years to avoid by generation
Ford called the 2009 F-150 a redesign inside and out, the 2015 all-new with a high-strength aluminum-alloy body, and revealed another all-new F-150 in June 2020, so the years in the file fall into three groups. NHTSA's file starts at 2010.
2010–2014
Redesigned for 2009
2013 most complaints · powertrain
- 2010842
- 20112,186
- 20121,777
- 20132,975
- 20141,520
9,300 complaints · 5 model years
2015–2020
All-new for 2015, aluminum body
2018 most complaints · powertrain
- 20151,683
- 20162,023
- 20171,414
- 20182,273
- 20191,309
- 2020713
9,415 complaints · 6 model years
2021–2025
All-new F-150 revealed in 2020
2021 most complaints · powertrain
- 2021985
- 2022578
- 2023397
- 2024184
- 2025101
2,245 complaints · 5 model years
Ford F-150 recalls by year
Recall campaigns NHTSA lists for each model year, read Oct 3, 2026. A campaign that covers several years counts in each of them. Recall repairs are free at the dealer; check one car with its VIN.
- 2010Most often: body structure1
- 2011Most often: powertrain6
- 2012Most often: powertrain4
- 2013Most often: powertrain3
- 2014Most often: hydraulic braking8
- 2015Most often: engine14
- 2016Most often: engine14
- 2017Most often: powertrain18
- 2018Most often: powertrain19
- 2019Most often: exterior lighting9
- 2020Most often: exterior lighting11
- 2021Most often: powertrain29
- 2022Most often: exterior lighting23
- 2023Most often: powertrain13
- 2024Most often: steering11
- 2025Most often: engine and cooling13
Ford F-150 crash test ratings by year
NHTSA's overall star rating for each model year, with the frontal, side and rollover stars beside it.
- 2010No overall rating—
- 2011Frontal 3 · Side 5 · Rollover 3–44/5
- 2012Frontal 3–4 · Side 5 · Rollover 3–44/5
- 2013Frontal 3–4 · Side 5 · Rollover 3–44/5
- 2014Frontal 3–4 · Side 5 · Rollover 3–44/5
- 2015Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 45/5
- 2016Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 45/5
- 2017Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 45/5
- 2018Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 44–5/5
- 2019Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 44–5/5
- 2020Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 44–5/5
- 2021Frontal 5 · Side 5 · Rollover 45/5
- 2022Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 45/5
- 2023Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 45/5
- 2024Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 45/5
- 2025Frontal 4–5 · Side 5 · Rollover 45/5
Federal investigations
NHTSA's defect office has opened 15 investigations into 13 problems that cover Ford F-150 model years from 2010 to 2025. An investigation looks into a possible defect; it is not a finding.
Common questions
What are the Ford F-150 years to avoid?
The years with the most owner complaints are 2013, 2018, 2011 and 2016. Treat them as the years to inspect hardest, not as a verdict on every car: run the VIN for open recalls and have the systems owners named checked before you buy.
What year is the most reliable Ford F-150?
Complaints can't name a most reliable year, because the file counts reports, not failures per car sold. Of the years with at least five years on the road, 2020 drew the fewest complaints: 713. Newer years have fewer still, but they have had less time to collect them.
What is the most common problem with the Ford F-150?
Across every year in the file, owners named the powertrain most, in 7,441 complaints, then the engine, in 3,735.
Which Ford F-150 years have the most recalls?
2021, 2022 and 2018, with 29, 23 and 19 recall campaigns.
F-150 year pages
20132,975What the complaint record can't tell you
Sources
Show all 5 sources
Counts by system and year cover vehicles with at least 10 complaints.